The determination of performance of a reinforced concrete structure through linear and nonlinear methods

The requirement for the evaluation of earthquake performance of current structures and structures that will be built in near future become apparent because of the fact that our country is located on an active earthquake region, previous earthquakes caused financial damage and the number of deaths due to earthquakes.Both linear and nonlinear methods are applicable for the determination of performance of structures under earthquake effects. Linear methods are referred as strength-based methods while nonlinear methods are named as deformation-based methods.In this study, performance of a reinforced school building which has been designed according to Turkish Seismic Design Code (2007) has been evaluated using both linear and nonlinear methods. The structural system of building has 5 storey frames with shear walls without any structural irregularity.The examined building satisfies the Immediate Occupancy Performance Level requirements in the case of using of the linear method. However; it is observed that beams can not satisfy the Immediate Occupancy Performance Level requirements in the case of using of the nonlinear method.Keywords: Earthquake, Performance Level, Damage Level, Linear Analysis, Nonlinear Analysis